Michael Spence, the provost and president of University College London (UCL), has repaid nearly £5,500 in expenses that were claimed for his wife, Seon Young “Jenny” Ihn, following an internal review and public scrutiny. Ihn, a PhD student at UCL researching the "materiality of colour" at the Slade School of Fine Art, does not hold an official university position.

Between September 2022 and May 2024, Ihn’s expenses were covered by UCL for four international trips, despite the university’s expenses policy clearly stating that costs related to the accompaniment of a spouse would not be reimbursed. These claims included travel for events described as “philanthropic engagement” in New York and participation in a “spouse programme” in Switzerland. Internal correspondence shows repeated objections over several years regarding the eligibility of these expenses, but senior university officials ultimately approved the claims.

The release of financial records related to the couple’s expenses was delayed for nearly a year after a freedom of information request, with disclosure only occurring after intervention by the Information Commissioner’s Office. UCL's most recent accounts indicate that Spence earns more than £530,000 annually in salary and benefits, making him one of the highest-paid university leaders in the UK; only Oxford University reports a higher vice-chancellor salary.

Some university staff expressed concerns about reimbursing Ihn’s travel costs due to the policy against spouse expenses. One staff member highlighted in June 2023 that paying for partner travel was inconsistent with a “fairly clear and consistently applied aspect of the policy.” However, another staff member justified the reimbursements by noting that “discussion sessions for the partners” at events implied that Ihn was representing UCL during these trips. Questions were also raised internally about specific expenses, such as a £66 meal in Milan attended only by Ihn and Spence, which was submitted as a business expense.

Spence’s expense claims have faced scrutiny before. In his previous role as vice-chancellor at the University of Sydney, he claimed over A$10,000 (approximately £5,200) for membership fees to the Oxford and Cambridge Club in London. At that time, Sydney University stated that the memberships were approved based on their relevance to his professional duties.

UCL issued a statement saying there had only been four trips across five years where expenses were claimed for Ihn, all of which were approved at the time. The university acknowledged that incorrect advice had been given regarding the claims, and the total amount of £5,487.02 has now been repaid in full. UCL also stated that Spence acted in good faith throughout the process and apologized to him for the error.